CLERMONT AUVERGNE picked up their first win of this season’s Heineken Cup in some style as they put Aironi to the sword in a one-sided clash at Stade Marcel Michelin last night.

IF the current spin whirling around this Sunday’s World Cup clash is to believed, Italy’s backline will be standing around twiddling their thumbs under the Otago Stadium roof while their pack goes about the business of trying to arm wrestle Ireland into submission.

IF Italy ran with the ball as much as they do with their fighting talk, we could be in for a very different game this Sunday rather than the arm wrestle they will try and force on Ireland.

Italy 27 USA 10

ITALY captain Sergio Parisse saw his side run in nine tries in yesterday’s win against Russia in Nelson — but has warned them that they must improve defensively.

Scotland were today aiming to avoid the RBS 6 Nations wooden spoon in their clash with Italy at Murrayfield.

SAM WARBURTON believes Wales are turning around their RBS 6 Nations campaign after the “doom and gloom” of an opening day defeat against Grand Slam-chasing England.

Italy 16 Wales 24

Clermont Auvergne 28 Racing Metro 17

LEE BYRNE has revealed he feared the selection axe for Wales’ successful Italian job after his yellow card calamity at Croke Park.

GAMBLING has never come easily to Declan Kidney but there’s a view in the French capital that he’s taking something of a chance with Stephen Ferris by including the Ulster man at number six for today’s crunch RBS Six Nations clash with France.

Ireland are beginning the defence of their RBS 6 Nations crown amid high expectations at Croke Park against wooden spoon favourites Italy.

SCOTLAND prop Allan Jacobsen faces four months on the sidelines after tests showed he will require shoulder surgery.

Ireland are unchanged for Italy at the Stadio Flaminio as they sought to generate further momentum for their RBS 6 Nations title bid.

LAST Saturday’s stirring Six Nations win over France, a first in eight meetings, didn’t just represent a change-point in Ireland’s recent international rugby fortunes — it also represented a welcome turnaround for full-back Rob Kearney.

England 36 Italy 11

CLERMONT AUVERGNE saw their faint Heineken Cup hopes extinguished despite a comprehensive bonus point victory against Montauban in the all-French Pool One clash at Stade Marcel Michelin last night.

FRANCE captain Lionel Nallet preferred to dwell on his team’s victory over Italy rather than the prospect of registering a heavy win against Wales next weekend to retain the RBS 6 Nations Championship title.

JONNY WILKINSON clocked up 1,000 points for England as he guided the World Cup finalists through a hazardous Italian job and revived their RBS Six Nations campaign.

LAWRENCE Dallaglio admits European champions Wasps “have to do the business” on Saturday after suffering their biggest Heineken Cup defeat for almost six years.

Scotland 18 Italy 16

ITALY’S stuttering World Cup campaign showed no sign of improvement last night as they struggled to an unconvincing Pool C win over brave Portugal at the Parc des Princes.

ITALY got their Rugby World Cup campaign back on track last night with a laboured victory over Pool C rivals Romania in Marseille.

IF CONTROVERSY is your thing, last weekend provided enough talking points to keep you going for weeks to come.

ITALY flanker Mauro Bergamasco will miss Saturday’s RBS 6 Nations clash with Ireland after receiving a four-week ban for punching Wales captain Stephen Jones.

Italy centre Gonzalo Canale has been ruled out of Saturday’s RBS 6 Nations Championship game against Ireland.

Italy 23 Wales 20

ITALY captain Marco Bortolami has admitted he feared the Azzurri might throw away their chance to make history in the RBS 6 Nations Championship against Scotland.

A LOT has been made of Bernard Laporte’s insistence on experimentation for this year’s RBS 6 Nations Championship, but it will be interesting to see if France’s head coach sticks to his word following the comprehensive opening day rout of beleaguered Italy.

Overmach Parma 45 Border Reivers 37

AUSTRALIA coach John Connolly was mightily relieved to see his side avoid a major upset against a spirited Italy in the second of their four-game European tour.

Clermont Auvergne 27 Leicester 40

Italian winger Gonzalo Canale will miss Saturday’s RBS 6 Nations clash against Wales due to a left shoulder injury.

Italy 17 Ireland 28

ANDREA MASI and Gonzalo Canale have been issued with special orders from Italian coach John Kirwan to keep Brian O’Driscoll and Gordon D’Arcy under wraps tomorrow.

Andrew Baldock

Italy’s defensive co-ordinator is relishing the prospect of two of the game’s leading centre partnerships going head-to-head on Sunday when the Azzurri meet Ireland in the RBS 6 Nations in Rome.

Cardiff Blues 15 Stade Francais 38

THE Six Nations Championship title may out of reach but Ireland did enough to suggest they will win another Triple Crown in 2004 after putting Italy to the sword.

Ireland: Dempsey, S. Horgan, D’arcy, O’Driscoll, Murphy, O’Gara, Stringer, Corrigan, Byrne, Hayes, O’Kelly, O’Callaghan, S. Easterby, Gleeson, Foley.

Italy 20 Scotland 14

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